JP6525913B2 - Mobile cultivation device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a mobile cultivation apparatus which circulates and moves a plurality of cultivation benches for cultivating plants such as vegetables and florets in a closed loop.

  BACKGROUND Conventionally, a mobile cultivation apparatus as disclosed in, for example, Patent Document 1 has been put to practical use. In this mobile cultivation apparatus, a pair of horizontal transport devices arranged in parallel with transport directions opposite to each other, and from the lateral transport downstream side area of one lateral transport apparatus toward the lateral transport upstream side area of the other lateral transport apparatus A pair of vertical guiding devices for guiding a plurality of cultivation benches are arranged in a closed loop. By operation of a pair of push units for moving the cultivation bench on the horizontal conveyance device toward the vertical guidance device, the plurality of cultivation benches on the vertical guidance device are conveyed in a ball-like manner.

  The cultivation bench pushed out from the most downstream position of the vertical guiding device to the lateral conveyance upstream region of the lateral conveyance device is, for example, after picking by picking fruits and picking flowers, the lateral conveyance downstream region to the lateral conveyance downstream region It is transported. Then, the next cultivation bench is moved from the most downstream position of the vertical guiding device to the lateral conveyance upstream side area of the lateral conveyance device in which there is no cultivation bench, and the worker is Work is done by In this way, since the worker can perform operations such as picking fruits and picking flowers at a certain place, the work of the worker accompanying the movement of the work place as compared with high-level cultivation etc. where the work is done while walking The load is reduced.

JP 2014-036578 A Patent No. 5277379

  In such a mobile cultivation apparatus, the operator must wait until the next cultivation bench is moved from the vertical guiding apparatus to the horizontal conveyance apparatus when starting work on the next cultivation bench. Since a lot of waiting time occurs, there is a demand to reduce the waiting time of the worker.

  This invention is made in view of the said present condition, and makes it a technical subject to provide the mobile cultivation apparatus which can shorten a worker's waiting time.

One aspect of the mobile culture apparatus of the present invention is a pair of horizontal transfer devices arranged in parallel with the transfer direction opposite to each other, and a horizontal transfer of the other horizontal transfer device from the horizontal transfer downstream side area of one horizontal transfer device. A pair of vertical guiding devices for guiding a plurality of cultivation benches toward the upstream area are arranged in a closed loop, and a single cultivation bench is horizontally transported on the horizontal transport device, and a plurality of cultivation benches are transported on the vertical guiding device A moving cultivation apparatus for circulating a plurality of cultivation benches along the closed loop, and in the bench conveyance standby state in which a series of cultivation bench conveying operations are stopped , the lateral conveyance downstream on the lateral conveying apparatus a configuration in which cultivation bench Ru is stopped on the side regions, a pair of conveying a cultivation bench in the lateral conveyance downstream region on a plurality of cultivation bench pileup shape in the longitudinal guide device is moved into the vertical guiding device of And Tsu shoe unit comprises a pair of pull unit for moving the cultivation benches in a most downstream position of the longitudinal guide device to the lateral conveyance upstream area, and executes the operation of the pull unit and the push unit simultaneously.

In the one aspect of the mobile culture apparatus of the present invention, the cultivation bench in front Kiyoko conveyance downstream region comprises a pair of push unit for moving into the longitudinal guide device, the lateral conveyance downstream region by the operation of the push unit After the cultivation bench is moved, the lateral conveyance of the cultivation bench by the lateral conveyance device may be started while the push unit returns to the state before the cultivation bench is transported.

  In one aspect of the mobile cultivation apparatus of the present invention, the cultivation bench is stopped in the lateral conveyance downstream side area on the lateral conveyance apparatus in the bench conveyance standby state, so immediately after the conveyance of the cultivation bench starts The cultivation bench in the conveyance downstream area is conveyed to the most upstream position of the vertical guiding device, and the cultivation bench in the most downstream position of the vertical guiding device is conveyed to the lateral conveyance upstream area of the horizontal conveyance device. In addition, the worker can start work such as picking fruits and picking flowers while the cultivation bench is moved from the vertical guiding device to the lateral conveying device. Therefore, the mobile cultivation apparatus of this aspect can accelerate the work start time of the worker and can reduce the waiting time of the worker.

  In the above aspect of the mobile cultivation apparatus of the present invention, the lateral transfer device includes a transfer member connected to the vertical guide device, an elevated position at which the transfer member is connected to the vertical guide device, and a retracted position retracted downward. A lifting device for raising and lowering the transfer member between the lateral transfer upstream area and the lateral transfer downstream region is provided respectively, and in the bench transfer standby state, the transfer member is disposed at the raised position and transfers the lateral transfer downstream region If the cultivation bench is stopped on the member, the cultivation bench located on the receiving member in the downstream area of the lateral conveyance downstream side is conveyed to the most upstream position of the vertical guiding device immediately after the conveyance of the cultivation bench is started. The cultivation bench located at the most downstream position of the vertical guiding device is conveyed onto the passing member in the region of the horizontal conveyance upstream side. Therefore, the mobile cultivation apparatus of this aspect can accelerate the work start time of the worker and can reduce the waiting time of the worker.

The above one aspect of the mobile cultivation apparatus of the present invention comprises: a pair of push units for moving the cultivation bench in the lateral conveyance downstream side area to the vertical guiding apparatus and conveying the plurality of cultivation benches in a hammering manner on the longitudinal guiding apparatus; A pair of pull units for moving the cultivation bench at the most downstream position of the vertical guiding device to the lateral conveyance upstream area is provided to simultaneously perform the operation of the push unit and the pull unit. Thereby, after the cultivation bench at the head of the cultivation bench arrangement on the vertical guiding device is arranged at the most downstream position of the longitudinal guiding device, for example, by the operation of the push unit, the mobile bench of the aspect is a pulling unit of the cultivation bench As compared with the reference configuration example in which the cultivation bench is moved to the lateral conveyance device, the time when the cultivation bench in the vertical guiding device is started to be moved to the lateral conveyance device can be made earlier. Also, the worker can start work while the cultivation bench is moving from the vertical guiding device to the lateral conveying device. Therefore, the mobile cultivation apparatus of this aspect can accelerate the work start time of the worker and can shorten the wait time of the worker. Moreover, since the mobile cultivation apparatus of this aspect performs the operation of the push unit and the pull unit at the same time, movement of the cultivation bench to the lateral conveyance apparatus is completed after the push unit is activated as compared with the above reference configuration example. The time required for the cultivation bench can be shortened.

In the above aspect of the mobile cultivation apparatus of the present invention, the cultivation bench in the lateral conveyance downstream side area is provided with a pair of push units for moving the cultivation bench in the lateral conveyance downstream side area to the longitudinal guiding device. After the push unit is moved, the lateral conveyance of the cultivation bench by the lateral conveyance device is started during the movement of the push unit back to the pre-operation state, so that the lateral conveyance is performed after the push unit returns to the pre-harvest conveyance state. The lateral transfer start time of the cultivation bench can be advanced compared to the reference configuration example in which the lateral transfer by the device is started. Therefore, the mobile cultivation apparatus of this aspect can shorten the time from the cultivation bench being disposed in the lateral conveyance upstream side area of the lateral conveyance apparatus to reaching the lateral conveyance downstream side area, and thus the time required for circulation of the cultivation bench Can be shortened. In addition, the mobile cultivation apparatus of this aspect is laterally transported after the cultivation bench is disposed in the lateral transport upstream side area of the lateral transport device by advancing the lateral transport start time of the cultivation bench as compared with the reference configuration example. Thus, it is possible to shorten the time until the entrance to the lateral conveyance downstream side area is started. For example, in the case where the work place of the worker is only the region facing the lateral conveyance downstream region of the lateral conveyance device, the worker is a cultivated plant on the cultivation bench which has entered the lateral conveyance downstream region from the lateral conveyance upstream region Work can be started against Therefore, the mobile cultivation apparatus of this aspect can advance the start time of the workable period of the worker by advancing the lateral conveyance start time of the cultivation bench, and hence can shorten the waiting time of the worker.

  Thus, the mobile cultivation apparatus of the present invention can shorten the waiting time of the worker, so the operator can start the operation start time for the cultivation plant etc. on the cultivation bench earlier, and hence the operation finish time earlier, and further the cultivation bench It is possible to shorten the transfer waiting time of That is, the mobile cultivation apparatus of this invention can shorten the worker's total working time including the said waiting time, in other words, a worker's working time and restraint time, by shortening a worker's waiting time.

It is a schematic plan view of the mobile cultivation apparatus in the embodiment of the present invention. It is the schematic front view which looked at the mobile cultivation apparatus from the front side. It is the schematic side view which looked at the mobile cultivation apparatus from the right side. It is a schematic plan view of a cultivation bench which constitutes a mobile cultivation device. It is a schematic front view of a cultivation bench. It is a schematic side view of a cultivation bench. It is a schematic side view which shows the modification of a cultivation bench. It is a top view which shows schematic structure of a horizontal conveyance apparatus. It is a front view which shows schematic structure of a horizontal conveyance apparatus. It is a side view which shows schematic structure of the horizontal drive part of a horizontal conveyance apparatus. It is a side view showing a schematic structure of a vertical guidance device. It is a side view showing a schematic structure of a transverse transfer device including a lifting and lowering device when a passing-through member is in a raised position. It is a side view showing an outline structure of a transverse conveyance device containing a rise-and-fall device when a succession member is in a retreat position. It is a top view which shows the structure of a push unit typically. It is a side view which shows the structure of a push unit typically. It is a side view which shows the structure of a pull unit typically. It is a top view which shows the structure of a pull unit typically. It is a block diagram showing an example of a control system of a move cultivation device. It is a flowchart which shows the example of cultivation bench conveyance control of a mobile cultivation apparatus. The example of a time chart at the time of a harvesting operation is shown, (A) is a time chart of embodiment, (B) shows the time chart of a reference structural example. It is a front view which shows the other example of the bench conveyance waiting state of a mobile cultivation apparatus. It is a flowchart which shows the other example of the cultivation bench conveyance control of a mobile cultivation apparatus. The time chart example at the time of a harvesting operation is shown, (C) is a time chart of a modification, (B) shows the time chart of a reference composition example.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described based on the drawings.

  First, the schematic structure of the mobile cultivation apparatus will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 3. In the following description, when using terms (for example, “left and right”, “upper and lower”, etc.) indicating specific directions and positions as necessary, the direction orthogonal to the paper surface in FIG. Let the direction (or front and back direction) be the lateral direction (or the left and right direction) on the paper surface. Terms representing these directions are used for the convenience of description but do not limit the technical scope of the invention.

  Furthermore, in the embodiment, it is assumed that the longitudinal direction and the lateral direction are parallel to the horizontal plane, but the configuration of the present invention is not limited to this, and for example, fruits and vegetables such as strawberries Alternatively, one or both of the longitudinal direction and the lateral direction may be slightly inclined with respect to the horizontal plane, as long as the cultivation of florets is not hindered.

  FIG.1 and FIG.3 is the top view and side view which show schematic structure of the mobile cultivation apparatus in embodiment of this invention, and shows the state in which several cultivation benches 10 are on vertical guidance apparatus 20A, 20B. . The number of cultivation benches 10 arranged on the vertical guiding devices 20A and 20B may be, for example, 50 or more, but in the drawing, the central portions of the vertical guiding devices 20A and 20B are omitted and drawn in a shortened manner. . Moreover, FIG. 2 is a front view which shows schematic structure of the mobile cultivation apparatus 1, and has drawn typically the state which the cultivation bench 10 exists in the horizontal conveyance downstream side area | region 40d of horizontal conveyance apparatus 40A.

  The mobile cultivation apparatus 1 of the present embodiment circulates and moves a plurality of cultivation benches 10 for cultivating plants such as fruits and vegetables, leafy vegetables, or florets along a closed loop of a plan view rectangular. The mobile cultivation apparatus 1 includes a pair of horizontal transfer devices 40A and 40B aligned in parallel with the transfer direction opposite to each other, and the other horizontal transfer device from the horizontal transfer downstream side region 40d of one horizontal transfer device 40A (40B) A pair of vertical guiding devices 20A (20B) for guiding a plurality of cultivation benches 10 is provided in a horizontal conveyance upstream side area 40u of 40B (40A), and these form a closed loop rectangular in plan view.

  In addition, push units 21A and 21B are provided to move the cultivation bench 10 horizontally conveyed to the horizontal conveyance downstream side area 40d of the horizontal conveyance devices 40A and 40B toward the most upstream position 20u of the vertical guiding devices 20A and 20B. . Further, a pair of pull units 22A, 22B are provided for moving the cultivation bench 10 at the most downstream position 20d of the vertical guiding devices 20A, 20B to the lateral conveyance upstream region 40u of the lateral conveying devices 40A, 40B.

  When the push benches 21A and 21B are activated and the cultivation bench 10 in the horizontal conveyance downstream side area 40d of the horizontal conveyance devices 40A and 40B is moved toward the most upstream position 20u of the vertical guidance devices 20A and 20B, the vertical guidance device A plurality of cultivation benches 10 arranged on top of 20A and 20B move in a ball-like manner at the same time. On the other hand, the pull units 22A and 22B move only the cultivation bench 10 at the most downstream position 20d of the vertical guiding devices 20A and 20B to the lateral conveyance upstream side area 40u of the lateral conveying devices 40A and 40B. Thereafter, the pull units 22A and 22B return to the standby position, and the cultivation bench 10 is moved from the lateral conveyance upstream side area 40u to the lateral conveyance downstream side area 40d by the lateral conveyance devices 40A and 40B and stopped. This state is a bench conveyance standby state. Although the details will be described later, when the conveyance start signal is input to the controller 600 (see FIG. 18), the bench conveyance standby state is released, and the push-like conveyance and pull of the plurality of cultivation benches 10 by the push units 21A and 21B The cultivation bench 10 is moved to the lateral conveyance devices 40A and 40B by the units 22A and 22B.

  The above-described series of operations by the lateral conveyance devices 40A and 40B, the push units 21A and 21B, and the pull units 22A and 22B are repeated to form the lateral conveyance devices 40A and 40B and the vertical guiding devices 20A and 20B. A plurality of cultivation benches 10 circulate in a counterclockwise direction (arrow direction) in FIG. 1 along a closed loop of a plan view rectangular. For example, a worker who performs operations such as picking fruits and picking flowers stands on the front side (lower side in FIG. 1) of the horizontal conveyance downstream side region 40d of the horizontal conveyance device 40A, and the horizontal conveyance upstream side by the horizontal conveyance device 40A. Work is performed on the cultivation bench 10 moving from the area 40 u to the lateral conveyance downstream side area 40 d and the cultivation plants on the cultivation bench 10 stopped in the lateral conveyance downstream side area 40 d. The work place of the worker is not limited to the lateral conveyance downstream side area 40d, and may be both the lateral conveyance upstream side area 40u and the lateral conveyance downstream side area 40d of the lateral conveyance device 40A, for example.

  Next, the structure of the cultivation bench 10 will be described with reference to FIGS. 4 to 6. 4 to 6 are a plan view, a front view, and a side view showing a schematic structure of the cultivation bench 10. The cultivation bench 10 includes a rectangular frame 11 having a substantially rectangular shape in plan view, and is set in the mobile cultivation device 1 such that the longitudinal direction thereof is the conveyance direction of the lateral conveyance device. The rectangular frame 11 has a pair of lateral frame members 111 extending in parallel in the longitudinal direction, a pair of lateral frame members 111, and a pair of lateral frame members 111 connected at their intermediate positions. It consists of five vertical frame members 112. The horizontal frame member 111 and the vertical frame member 112 are formed of sheet metal products, and are long members having a cross-sectional shape close to a U-shape or a U-shape. The horizontal frame member 111 and the vertical frame member 112 are firmly connected to each other by welding or using a bolt and a nut.

  On the upper surface side of the rectangular frame 11 of the cultivation bench 10, a planter mounting portion 12 is provided on which a plurality of planters 2 are arranged in a row in the longitudinal direction. The planter 2 accommodates soil for cultivation and the like, and a general horizontal planter etc. made of resin is used. The planters 2 are drawn by broken lines in FIGS. 5 and 6, and five planters 2 are arranged side by side in a longitudinal direction.

  The planter mounting portion 12 holds the width direction of the planter 2 so as to sandwich it from both sides, and includes a pair of horizontally long members extending in the longitudinal direction (lateral direction) of the planter 2, both ends of the pair of horizontally long members and four inner sides thereof The six vertical members function as members for restricting the lateral movement of the five planters 2. The pair of transverse members and the six longitudinal members are connected to each other by welding or using a bolt and a nut, and the planter mounting portion 12 (pair of transverse members) and the rectangular frame 11 (five longitudinal frame members 112) They are connected to each other using welding or bolts and nuts.

  As can be seen from FIGS. 4 and 6, the planter mounting portion 12 is provided on one side (upper side in FIG. 4, upper side in FIG. 6) of the opposing long sides on the upper surface side of the rectangular frame 11. There is. In the space on the other side (the lower side in FIG. 4 and the left side in FIG. 6), as can be seen from FIG. 6, a downward U-shaped net support member 13 is provided. The mesh support member 13 is formed, for example, by bending a steel pipe, and a total of five mesh support members 13 are provided along the five vertical frame members 112 of the rectangular frame 11 respectively. For example, the mesh support member 13 is mounted on the rectangular frame 11 such that both end portions (cylindrical portions) of the mesh support member 13 are fitted from above onto bosses (not shown) provided on the upper surface of the vertical frame member 112. Preferably, it can be removably installed.

  Further, instead of mounting the two end portions of the mesh support member 13 to the five vertical frame members 112 of the rectangular frame 11, the planter placement portion 12 (a horizontally long member on the near side) and the front side of the rectangular frame 11 It may be mounted so as to be bridged with the horizontal frame member 111. In that case, any number of mesh support members 13 can be provided at any intervals. Alternatively, instead of the U-shaped mesh support member 13, a conventional cantilever arm-shaped mesh support member (see Patent Document 1) may be used as the vertical frame member 112 or the planter mounting portion 12 It may be fixed to).

  A plurality of wires can be fixed in a lateral direction to the plurality of mesh support members 13 as described above, and the mesh 131 can be covered (laid) thereon. In the case of using a highly rigid mesh, it is also possible to directly coat the mesh 131 on the mesh support member 13. As the material of the net 131, various materials such as metal and resin can be adopted. The mesh 131 is detachably attached to the mesh support member 13 by a stopper (not shown) or the like. It is possible to place an extended portion of a fruit vegetable (for example, strawberry) under cultivation which has been extended from the upper surface of the planter 2 to the front side on the net 131 and support it in a floating state from the upper surface of the rectangular frame 11.

  In the example shown in FIG. 6, the upper surface of the mesh support member 13 is substantially parallel to the upper surface of the rectangular frame 11. Therefore, the mesh 131 placed on the mesh support member 13 is substantially parallel to the upper surface of the rectangular frame 11. As a modification, as shown in FIG. 7, the upper surface of the mesh support member 13 may be configured to be inclined with respect to the upper surface of the rectangular frame 11. That is, the net 131 put on the net support member 13 has a downward slope from the upper surface of the planter 2 to the front side (left side in FIG. 7) with respect to the upper surface of the rectangular frame 11. In the configuration in which the net 131 of FIG. 6 is made horizontal, there is an advantage that the stretches of fruits and vegetables such as strawberries can be stably supported by the net. For example, even if the culture bench 10 shakes in the horizontal direction due to the impact generated by the ball-like vertical transportation, the elongated portion (especially, strawberry) of the fruit vegetable supported by the net 131 is not easily damaged. However, in the case of employing a conventional cantilever arm-like net support member, there is no advantage to extend the net 131 in the horizontal direction. In the configuration in which the net 131 of FIG. 7 is inclined, there is an advantage that the workability of the operation such as picking fruits performed on the extension part (portion put on the net) of a fruit vegetable such as a strawberry is improved. In addition, when growing a strawberry with the planter 2 on the cultivation bench 10, the extension part extends only on the side of the net 131 (the other side of the opposite long side, the left side in FIG. 6), and the opposite side (opposite) It is cultivated so that it does not extend on one side of the long side (right side in FIG. 6). For example, in the case of a strawberry, a runner (zuru) comes out of a parent stock and a child stock comes out at the tip of this runner. When using this offspring as a seedling, cut off the runner between the offspring and plant the offspring on the planter 2 with the runner cutting side facing one side of the opposing long side of the top surface of the rectangular frame 11 Thus, from the planted seedlings, flower buds emerge and extend only on the other side (net 131 side), and it is possible to attach fruits only on the net 131 side.

  On the bottom side of the rectangular frame 11 of the cultivation bench 10, idler wheels 14 and 15 are provided at four locations that are respectively separated in the horizontal direction and the vertical direction. These idler wheels 14, 15 roll on a pair of vertical guide rails 201 (described later) of the vertical guide devices 20A, 20B, whereby the cultivation bench 10 has less resistance on the vertical guide devices 20A, 20B. It can move smoothly. In FIG. 5, the circular cross-sectional contour of the vertical guide rail 201 is drawn by a broken line, and in FIG. 6, the straight upper and lower contours of the vertical guide rail 201 are drawn by a broken line.

  The pair of idle wheels 14 on the left side are rotated about a horizontal axis by a holder 141 fixed to the lower surface of the vertical frame member 112 next to the left of the vertical frame member 112 in the horizontal direction at a distance in the front-rear direction. It is supported to roll. The pair of idle wheels 15 on the right side includes two (four in total) idle wheels 152. Two idler wheels 152 are supported by holders 151 fixed to the lower surface of the vertical frame member 112 next to the right of the vertical frame member 112 at the center in the horizontal direction so as to be separated in the front-rear direction.

  The two idler wheels 152 that make up each idler wheel 15 are supported so as to idle around an axis that is inclined 45 degrees in the opposite direction from the axis in the lateral direction, and a pipe-shaped vertical guide rail 201 To roll from the top at an angle. That is, the two idle wheels 152 are configured to roll on the vertical guide rails 201 and at the same time restrict movement of the cultivation bench 10 in a direction (lateral direction) perpendicular to the longitudinal conveyance direction.

  When the plurality of cultivation benches 10 in the vertical guiding devices 20A and 20B are conveyed in a ball-like shape by the operation of the push units 21A and 21B by the configuration of the idle wheels 14 and 15 as described above, the push unit 21A, While the load applied to 21B is reduced, the shift of the cultivation bench 10 in the direction perpendicular to the longitudinal conveyance direction is prevented, and the plurality of cultivation benches 10 can move the longitudinal guiding devices 20A and 20B smoothly. In addition, when sliding friction can be made small enough, using the sliding member which slides on the vertical guide rail 201 instead of the idlers 14 and 15 is also considered.

  In addition, when a plurality of cultivation benches 10 are conveyed in a ball-stick shape, in order to reduce the impact and vibration due to the collision of the cultivation benches 10 before and after, the vibration-damping member 113 formed of an elastic material such as rubber is cultivated It is attached to the front of the lateral frame member 111 on the near side of the bench 10 in the front-rear direction. In the example of the cultivation bench 10 shown in FIGS. 4 to 6, the small rectangular vibration isolation members 113 are fixed to four places at predetermined intervals with an adhesive.

  The material of the anti-vibration member 113 is not particularly limited. Any material can be used as long as it can reduce shock and vibration by elasticity. There is no particular limitation on the shape, the attachment position, and the number. For example, an elongated sheet-like vibration damping member may be attached so as to cover substantially the entire front surface of the horizontal frame member 111.

  Moreover, IC tag (illustration omitted) is provided in the rectangular frame 11 of the cultivation bench 10, and the various information of the plant grown by the cultivation bench 10 is memorize | stored in IC tag. Thereby, the information of the plant to be grown is managed for every cultivation bench 10, and it contributes to the improvement of traceability.

  Next, the structure of the lateral conveyance devices 40A and 40B will be described. The basic structure of the pair of lateral transfer devices 40A and 40B is the same, and thus, the lateral transfer device 40 will be described below. The longitudinal guiding devices 20A, 20B, etc. will be described in the same manner. 8 and 9 show a schematic structure of the lateral conveyance device 40 (40A) in a plan view and a front view. In FIG. 9, the state where the cultivation bench 10 exists in the horizontal conveyance downstream side area 40d is depicted. The lateral conveyance device 40 includes a pair of parallel lateral rails 47 which are supported by a plurality of legs 41 and beams 42 and extend in the lateral direction.

  As shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, each lateral rail 47 is divided into three upstream, central, and downstream sides. This means that the longitudinal guiding device 20 (20A, 20B) and the lateral conveying device This is because the pull unit 22 (22A, 22B) and the push unit 21 (21A, 21B) for delivering the cultivation bench 10 with 40 (40A, 40B) are disposed so as to intersect the lateral rail 47 at a right angle. . When adopting a structure of a pull unit and a push unit which do not interfere with the lateral rails 47, each lateral rail 47 may be a single continuous lateral rail. In the following description, in the case of the lateral rail 47, the three lateral rails 47 on the upstream side, the central portion, and the downstream side are collectively referred to as one lateral rail 47.

  A plurality of pairs (17 pairs in the illustrated example) of guide wheels 48 are attached at predetermined intervals along the longitudinal direction of the pair of lateral rails 47. The guide ring 48 supports the bottom side of the lateral frame member 111 of the cultivation bench 10 and corresponds to a lateral guidance member for guiding the cultivation bench 10 in the lateral direction. As can be seen from FIG. 10, which is a side view showing a lateral drive unit described later, the guide ring 48 is attached to the upper surface of the lateral rail 47 so as to face inward using an L fitting 49 and a bolt and nut. The guide ring 48 includes an inner small diameter portion in contact with the bottom side of the horizontal frame member 111 of the cultivation bench 10 and an outer large diameter portion (flange). The large diameter portion is located outside the width direction (longitudinal direction) of the horizontal frame member 111 of the cultivation bench 10 and functions to restrict movement (shift) in a direction (longitudinal direction) perpendicular to the horizontal conveyance direction of the cultivation bench 10 Have. In addition, when sliding friction can be made small enough, the slide guide member which supports the bottom side of the cultivation bench 10 is used instead of the guide wheel 48, and the cultivation bench 10 slides along the horizontal rail 47 It is also conceivable to configure as follows.

  The schematic structure of the horizontal drive part 50 of the horizontal conveyance apparatus 40 which transversely conveys the cultivation bench 10 along the horizontal rail 47 is shown as a side view in FIG. The lateral drive unit 50 includes a lateral conveyance electric motor 501, a gear box 502, and a drive roller 503. An output shaft (rotational shaft) 504 of the horizontal conveyance electric motor 501 is connected to the gearbox 502, and a drive roller 503 is fixed to the output shaft (rotational shaft) 505 of the gearbox 502. When the lateral conveyance electric motor 501 is operated, the rotational speed is reduced by the gearbox 502 and the driving force is increased, and the driving roller 503 rotates around the axis AX1.

  The outer peripheral surface of the drive roller 503 is in contact with the bottom surface side of the cultivation bench 10, more specifically, the bottom surface side of the horizontal frame member 111 on the back side in the front-rear direction (longitudinal direction). The outer peripheral portion of the drive roller 503 is formed of a rubber material having large surface friction (grip force), and when the drive roller 503 rotates around the axis AX1, the outer peripheral surface of the drive roller 503 and the horizontal frame member 111 of the cultivation bench 10 , And the cultivation bench 10 is transported laterally (along the plurality of guide wheels 48). Therefore, as shown in FIG. 10, the upper end surface of the outer peripheral surface of the drive roller 503 is disposed so as to be slightly above the upper end surface of the inner small diameter portion of the guide ring 48.

  As shown in FIG. 8 and FIG. 9, the horizontal drive unit 50 (drive roller 503) is provided at two places separated in the longitudinal direction (lateral direction) of the horizontal conveyance device 40. The interval is shorter than the horizontal length of the horizontal frame member 111 of the cultivation bench 10. Therefore, when the cultivation bench 10 is conveyed by the lateral conveyance device 40 from the lateral conveyance upstream side region 40 u (left side) to the lateral conveyance downstream side region 40 d (right side), at least one of the left and right two drive rollers 503 It always contacts the bottom side of the horizontal frame member 111 of the cultivation bench 10. That is, when the horizontal drive unit 50 (drive roller 503) operates, the cultivation bench 10 located in the lateral conveyance upstream region 40u of the lateral conveyance device 40 is initially conveyed by the left drive roller 503, and moves to the right The bottom surface side of the horizontal frame member 111 comes into contact with the right drive roller 503, and after a short period of time being transported by both left and right drive rollers 503, the latter half is transported to the lateral transport downstream side region 40d by the right drive roller 503 Be done.

  As shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, a lateral conveyance completion sensor 701 for detecting that the cultivation bench 10 has been conveyed to the lateral conveyance downstream region 40d is provided at the right end of the lateral conveyance device 40. As a lateral conveyance completion sensor 701, for example, a limit switch that contacts a lateral conveyance tip (right end) of the cultivation bench 10 and outputs a signal, or an optical sensor or magnetic sensor that detects the lateral conveyance tip of the cultivation bench 10 Non-contact sensors can be used.

  Next, a schematic structure of a pair of vertical guiding devices 20 (20A, 20B) having basically the same structure is shown as a side view in FIG. The longitudinal guiding device 20 has a structure in which a pair of laterally spaced parallel longitudinal guiding rails 201 are supported by a plurality of columns 202 and beams. The pair of parallel vertical guide rails 201 guides the two pairs of idle wheels 14 and 15 provided on the bottom side of the rectangular frame 11 of the cultivation bench 10 as described above. That is, the cultivation bench 10 is conveyed in the vertical direction on the vertical guiding device 20 by the rolling of the two pairs of idle wheels 14 and 15 on the pair of parallel vertical guiding rails 201. In FIG. 11, the central portion of the vertical guiding device 20 is omitted and drawn in a shortened manner.

  In the present embodiment, the pair of vertical guide rails 201 is formed of a cylindrical steel pipe. This ensures strength and rigidity while reducing weight. Instead of a cylindrical pipe, for example, a square pipe of square cross section may be used. In that case, the left vertical guide rail 201 is fixed so that the upper surface of the square pipe is horizontal, and the idler wheel 14 rolls on the upper surface. On the other hand, the vertical guide rail 201 on the right side is fixed so that the ridge line of the square pipe is on the top and the plane on both sides thereof has an inclination of 45 degrees, and the two idle wheels 152 constituting the idle wheel 15 Will roll so as to sandwich the plane on both sides of the ridge from diagonally above.

  As shown in FIG. 11, the lateral conveyance device 40 located at the front and back (left and right in FIG. 11) of the longitudinal guiding device 20 is connected to the longitudinal guiding rail 201 of the longitudinal guiding device 20 to form a single linear guiding rail. A transfer member 402 configured as described above and a lifting device 43 for driving the transfer member 402 up and down are provided. A pair of transfer members 402 and lifting devices 43 are provided in the lateral conveyance upstream region 40 u and the lateral conveyance downstream region 40 d of the lateral conveyance device 40. The lifting device 43 raises and lowers the transfer member 402 between a raised position where the transfer member 402 is connected to the vertical guide rail 201 and becomes one linear guide rail, and a retracted position where it is retracted downward.

  FIG. 12 and FIG. 13 show schematic side views of the lateral transfer device 40 including the lifting device 43 when the transfer member 402 is in the raised position and in the retracted position. The lifting device 43 supports the air cylinder 432 installed on the beam member 431, the piston rod 433 extending thereabove, the lifting plate 434 fixed to the tip thereof, and the lifting plate 434 so as to be vertically slidable. A pair of guide frames 435 are provided. The transfer member 402 is fixed to the upper end of the lift plate 434.

  When the piston rod 433 of the air cylinder 432 is extended, the receiving member 402 is raised together with the lift plate 434, and as shown in FIG. 12, the receiving member 402 is in the raised position. In this raised position, the transfer member 402 is at the same height as the longitudinal guide rails 201 of the longitudinal guide device 20, and both become one linear guide rail. In this state, the two pairs of idle wheels 14 and 15 provided on the bottom side of the rectangular frame 11 of the cultivation bench 10 roll smoothly from the vertical guide rail 201 to the transfer member 402 or in the opposite direction. You can move around. Therefore, movement (delivery) of cultivation bench 10 by pull unit 22 or push unit 21 can be smoothly performed between vertical guidance device 20 and horizontal conveyance device 40.

  The piston rod 433 (protrusion length) of the air cylinder 432 is short in the state (the state of FIG. 12) in which the cultivation bench 10 is supported by the pair of transfer members 402 in the lateral conveyance upstream region 40u of the lateral conveyance device 40 Then, the transfer member 402 is lowered together with the lift plate 434. Then, while the transfer member 402 descends to the retracted position shown in FIG. 13, the bottom side of the cultivation bench 10 which is lowered together, more specifically, the bottom sides of the pair of horizontal frame members 111 is supported by contacting the guide ring 48 Ru. Further, as described above with reference to FIG. 10, the bottom surface side of the horizontal frame member 111 on the back side in the front-rear direction (longitudinal direction) contacts the driving roller 503 and is supported.

  As shown in FIG. 13, in a state in which the passing member 402 is lowered to the retracted position, the two pairs of idle wheels 14 and 15 on the bottom side of the cultivation bench 10 are free from the upper surface of the passing member 402 become. Therefore, when the drive roller 503 rotates and the cultivation bench 10 is transported in the lateral direction, the transfer member 402 does not hinder the transfer and the load of the lateral transportation does not occur.

  Further, when the piston rod 433 of the air cylinder 432 extends from the state of FIG. 13 below the cultivation bench 10 horizontally transported to the horizontal transport downstream side area 40d of the horizontal transport device 40, the relay member 402 in the retracted position is Ascending position shown in FIG. Along the way, the pair of transfer members 402 contact and support the two pairs of idle wheels 14 and 15 of the cultivation bench 10 and lift the cultivation bench 10. And the passing-in member 402 becomes the same height as the vertical guide rail 201 of the vertical guide apparatus 20, and both become one linear guide rail. By operating the push unit 21 in this state, the cultivation bench 10 is smoothly transported to the most upstream position 20 u of the vertical guiding device 20.

  Next, the structure of the push unit 21 will be described. 14 and 15 are a plan view and a side view showing a schematic structure of the push unit 21. As shown in FIG. The push unit 21 (21A, 21B) is provided in the lateral conveyance downstream side area 40d of the lateral conveyance device 40 (40A, 40B) as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, and the lateral conveyance downstream side area of the lateral conveyance device 40 By moving the cultivation bench 10 located at 40 d to the most upstream position 20 u of the longitudinal guiding device 20, the plurality of cultivation benches 10 arranged on the longitudinal guiding device 20 are longitudinally transported in a ball-like manner . Although push unit 21A and push unit 21B are the same structures, the front-back direction (longitudinal direction) of cultivation bench 10 conveyed by it differs. In FIG. 15, the push unit 21A provided in the horizontal conveyance downstream side area 40d of the horizontal conveyance device 40 on the front side in the vertical direction is illustrated as an example.

  As shown in FIGS. 14 and 15, the push unit 21 has a predetermined distance in the front-rear direction (longitudinal direction) of the push unit electric motor 211 and the drive sprocket 213 fixed to the output shaft (rotational shaft) 212 thereof. Driven sprocket 214, a chain 215 bridged between the drive sprocket 213 and the driven sprocket 214, and a push plate member fixed to the upper surface of the chain 215 using bolts and nuts 216 and metal fittings. It has 217. The drive circuit (not shown) of the push unit electric motor 211 is provided with an inverter.

  In FIG. 15, when the rotary shaft 212 of the push unit electric motor 211 rotates clockwise, the chain 215 bridged between the drive sprocket 213 and the driven sprocket 214 rotates clockwise and is fixed to the upper surface thereof. The push plate member 217 moves from the position of the solid line to the position of the broken line in the right direction (vertical direction). At this time, the lateral center portion of the horizontal frame member 111 of the cultivation bench 10 located on the receiving member 402 of the lateral conveyance downstream side area 40d where the action surface 218 of the push plate member 217 is at the raised position (see FIG. 12). The cultivation bench 10 is conveyed from the lateral conveyance downstream side area 40 d of the lateral conveyance device 40 to the most upstream position 20 u of the longitudinal guiding device 20. As described above, the two pairs of idle wheels 14 and 15 (see FIGS. 4 to 7) provided on the bottom side of the cultivation bench 10 move while rolling on the passing member 402 and the vertical guide rail 201. Therefore, the cultivation bench 10 smoothly moves from the horizontal conveyance device 40 to the vertical guiding device 20. Then, the plurality of cultivation benches 10 lined up on the vertical guiding device 20 are vertically transported in a ball-like shape.

  The push completion sensor 702 (see FIG. 18) detects that the push plate member 217 has moved from the standby position shown by the solid line in FIGS. 14 and 15 to the push completion position shown by the broken line. It is disposed on a frame that supports the When it is detected by the output of the push completion sensor 702 that the push plate member 217 has moved to the push completion position, the push unit electric motor 211 is stopped, and then reversely controlled to return the push plate member 217 to the standby position Be done. Here, the rotational speed may be different between the forward rotation and the reverse rotation of the push unit electric motor 211. For example, when the push unit electric motor 211 returns the push plate member 217, the push unit electric motor 211 is reversely rotated at a rotational speed faster than the rotational speed at the time of normal rotation when transporting the cultivation bench 10.

  Further, a push return sensor 703 (see FIG. 18) for detecting that the push plate member 217 has returned to the standby position is disposed on the frame. When it is detected by the output of the push completion sensor 702 that the push plate member 217 has returned to the standby position, the push unit electric motor 211 is stopped and the conveyance start signal is input to the controller 600 (see FIG. 18). stand by. The push completion sensor 702 and the push return sensor 703 are respectively configured by, for example, a limit switch, an optical sensor, a magnetic proximity sensor, and the like. Details of the control will be described later.

  As described above, in the present embodiment, the sprocket and the chain are used as a mechanism for converting the rotational force of the push unit electric motor 211 into a linear drive force, but the invention is not limited thereto. Other mechanisms may be used. Moreover, although the push unit electric motor 211 is used as a drive source of the push unit 21, it does not restrict to this, You may use other drive sources, such as an air cylinder and a hydraulic cylinder.

  Next, the structure of the pull unit 22 will be described. 16 and 17 are a side view and a plan view showing a schematic structure of the pull unit 22, respectively. The pull unit 22 (22A, 22B) is provided in the horizontal conveyance upstream region 40u of the horizontal conveyance device 40 (40A, 40B) as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 and at the most downstream position 20d of the vertical guiding device 20. It is for moving a certain cultivation bench 10 to the horizontal conveyance upstream area 40 u of the horizontal conveyance device 40. Although the pull unit 22A and the pull unit 22B have the same structure, the front-rear direction (longitudinal direction) of the cultivation bench 10 transported thereby is different. In FIG. 16, the pull unit 22A provided in the area 40u on the upstream side of the horizontal conveyance of the horizontal conveyance device 40 on the front side in the vertical direction is illustrated as an example.

  The pull unit 22 is swingable around an axial center AX2 transverse to the slide bracket 222, which slides in the longitudinal direction (longitudinal direction), and an elongated guide member 221 extending in the longitudinal direction. A pivotally engaged swing engagement member 223 is provided. The guide member 221 is fixed on the pull unit drive unit 224, and the pull unit drive unit 224 is supported by a plurality of legs.

  The pull unit drive unit 224 is for applying a driving force to slide the slide bracket 222 along the longitudinal direction (longitudinal direction) of the guide member 221. Specifically, the pull unit drive unit 224 is configured of a rodless cylinder. However, the pull unit drive unit 224 is not limited to this, and an appropriate one may be selected from an air cylinder, a hydraulic cylinder, an electric motor and a screw feed mechanism, and other various known drive means. The push unit 21 described above vertically transports the cultivation bench 10 located in the lateral conveyance downstream side area 40 d of the lateral conveyance device 40 and the plurality of cultivation benches 10 arranged on the longitudinal guiding device 20 in a ball-like manner. Requires a large driving force. On the other hand, since only one cultivation bench 10 (one unit) located at the most downstream position 20d of the vertical guiding device 20 needs to be moved to the lateral conveying device 40, a relatively small driving force is sufficient.

  The swing engagement member 223 pivotally supported by the slide bracket 222 about the axis AX2 is a substantially rectangular block made of aluminum or resin. As shown by the solid line in FIG. 16, the pivoting engagement member 223 in the steady state is located on the rear end side by its own weight, with the axis AX2 of the pivot being located on the front side of the slide bracket 222 in the longitudinal direction The lower end engaging portion 225 is in a raised state. The rocking engagement member 223 can be rocked counterclockwise (to the position of the broken line) from the position of the solid line, but can not be rocked clockwise from the position of the solid line. . The slide bracket 222 stands by at the rear end position (the right end position in FIG. 16) in the longitudinal direction (longitudinal direction) of the guide member 221, as shown by a solid line in FIG. The rear end position of the guide member 221 in the longitudinal direction is disposed at the most upstream position 20 u of the vertical guiding device 20.

  At the time of operation of the pull unit 22, the pull unit drive portion 224 of the pull unit 22 is positively operated and the slide bracket 222 is shown by the broken line from the standby position shown by the solid line along the longitudinal direction (longitudinal direction) of the guide member 221. Go to At this time, the inside of the horizontal frame member 111 on the tip side (front side) of the moving direction tip side (front side) of the cultivation bench 10 in which the tip engagement portion 225 (position of solid line) of the swing engagement member 223 is at the most downstream position 20d of the vertical guiding device 20 It contacts (engages) (rear side), and as shown in FIG. 16, the cultivation bench 10 is transported to the position of the broken line (on the passing-through member 402 in the raised position).

  A pull completion sensor 705 (see FIG. 18) for detecting that the slide bracket 222 has moved along the longitudinal direction (longitudinal direction) of the guide member 221 to the pull completion position (the position of the broken line) is disposed on the guide member 221 There is. The pull completion sensor 705 is configured by, for example, a magnetic proximity sensor, a limit switch, an optical sensor, or the like provided in the pull unit drive unit 224. When the output of the pull completion sensor 705 detects that the slide bracket 222 has moved to the pull completion position, the pull unit drive unit 224 stops its operation. In the pull unit drive unit 224, for example, a plurality of cultivation benches 10 arranged above the longitudinal guiding device 20 are vertically transported in a ball-like shape by the push unit 21, and the longitudinal transportation is completed and the leading cultivation bench 10 is the most downstream. Deactivates until it is located at position 20d.

  When the movement of the cultivation bench 10 by the pull unit 22 and the vertical transfer of the cultivation bench 10 by the push unit 21 are completed, the pull unit drive unit 224 of the pull unit 22 operates in reverse to move the cultivation bench 10 with the slide bracket 222 at the most downstream position 20d. Return to the lower standby position (solid line position). At this time, on the way the slide bracket 222 returns to the standby position, the tip end engaging portion 225 of the swinging engagement member 223 is the movement direction end side (rear side) of the cultivation bench 10 on the passing member 402 (see FIG. 12) And the lateral frame member 111 at the tip end side (front side) of the moving direction of the cultivation bench at the most downstream position 20d. The swing engagement member 223 swings in a state in which the tip engagement portion 225 is slightly lowered as shown by a broken line in FIG. 16 due to the contact with the horizontal frame member 111, and the slide bracket 222 moves to the standby position side. After passing through the lower part of the horizontal frame member 111 as it moves, the tip end engaging portion 225 ascends and returns to the solid line position at the standby position. Although not shown, a vertical conveyance sensor 704 (see FIG. 18) for detecting that the swing engagement member 223 swings as described above is disposed on the slide bracket 222.

  Further, a pull return sensor 706 (see FIG. 18) for detecting that the slide bracket 222 has returned to the standby position is disposed on the guide member 221. The pull return sensor 706 is constituted by, for example, a magnetic proximity sensor, a limit switch, an optical sensor or the like provided in the pull unit drive section 224. When it is detected by the output of the pull return sensor 706 that the slide bracket 222 has returned to the standby position, the pull unit drive unit 224 stops its operation, and a conveyance start signal is input to the controller 600 (see FIG. 18). Wait up to. In this manner, the pull unit 22 transports the cultivation bench 10 at the most downstream position 20 d of the vertical guiding device 20 onto the receiving member 402 in the lateral transport upstream region 40 u of the lateral transport device 40.

  In the present embodiment, a space in front of the lateral conveyance downstream side region 40d of the lateral conveyance device 40A on the near side in FIG. 1 is set as a work place for the cultivated plants and the like on the cultivation bench 10. The worker performs various operations (e.g., fruit picking, flower picking, weeding, pruning, replacement of planter 2, etc.) at the work place. In the substantially central part of the conveyance direction (lateral direction) of the horizontal conveyance device 40B on the back side, the watering device 31 for watering the cultivated plants on the cultivation bench 10 during horizontal conveyance and the agent dispersion for pest control A drug dispensing device 32 is arranged to perform the

  Since the drug spraying device 32 sprays the drug at the position farthest from the work place, the adverse effect of the drug on the worker working at the work place can be reduced. The watering to the plants by the watering device 31 does not particularly adversely affect the workers, so the watering device 31 is provided at substantially the central portion of both the rear side horizontal transfer device 40B and the front side horizontal transfer device 40A. You may provide.

  Next, an example of cultivation bench conveyance control by a control device (hereinafter referred to as a controller) provided in the mobile cultivation apparatus of the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 18 to 20. FIG. 18 is a block diagram showing an example of a control system, and FIG. 19 is a flowchart showing an example of cultivation bench transfer control. FIG. 20 shows an example of a time chart at the time of harvesting work, (A) shows a time chart of the embodiment, and (B) shows a time chart of a reference configuration example.

  As shown in FIG. 18, the controller 600 provided in the mobile culture apparatus 1 includes a lateral conveyance completion sensor 701, a push completion sensor 702, a push return sensor 703, a vertical conveyance sensor 704, a pull completion sensor 705, and a pull return sensor 706. Each output signal (detection signal) of is input. These sensors are as described above. Further, the controller 600 also receives a signal of the start switch 707 that outputs the conveyance start signal of the cultivation bench 10 and a signal of the stop switch 708 that outputs the conveyance stop signal of the cultivation bench 10.

  On the other hand, the control signal output from the controller 600 is the lateral conveyance electric motor 501 of the horizontal drive unit 50 of the lateral conveyance device 40 described above, the lifting device 43 (air cylinder 432), the push unit electric motor 211 of the push unit 21, It is given to the pull unit drive part 224 of the pull unit 22, the irrigation device 31 and the medicine spray device 32. In practice, each drive circuit is provided with a control signal from the controller 600, but it can be considered that the controller 600 includes each drive circuit.

The controller 600 also temporarily stores, for example, a central processing unit (CPU) that executes various arithmetic processing and control, a read only memory (ROM) that stores control programs and various data, and a control program and various data. RAM (Random Access Memory
), An input interface, etc. The controller 600 controls (the drive circuit of) each electric motor, air cylinder, etc. based on the output signal (detection signal) from each sensor according to a predetermined control program. An example of cultivation bench conveyance control is explained based on a flow chart of Drawing 19 and a time chart of Drawing 20 (A).

  As shown in FIGS. 1 and 9, the mobile cultivation apparatus 1 of the present embodiment is in a bench transport standby state in which the cultivation bench 10 is stopped in the lateral transport downstream side area 40d of the lateral transport apparatus 40. More specifically, in the mobile growing apparatus 1, the receiving member 402 is located at the raised position (see FIGS. 9 and 12), and the growing bench 10 transfers the lateral conveyance downstream side area 40d of the lateral conveyance device 40. A stopped state on the member 402 is a bench conveyance standby state. In addition, the cultivation bench 10 is disposed at the most downstream position 20 d of the vertical guiding device 20.

  As shown in FIG. 19, when the start switch 707 is pressed by the operator while the mobile cultivation apparatus 1 is in the bench transfer standby state, a transfer start signal of the start switch 707 is input to the controller 600 (step S1). The controller 600 operates the push unit electric motor 211 and the pull unit drive unit 224 to release the bench conveyance standby state and start the conveyance of the cultivation bench 10 by the input of the conveyance start signal (step S2).

  The push unit 21 is operated by the operation of the push unit electric motor 211, and the movement of the cultivation bench 10 from the receiving member 402 of the horizontal conveyance downstream side region 40d to the most upstream position 20u of the vertical guiding device 20 is started. Further, the pull unit 22 is operated by the operation of the pull unit drive unit 224, and the movement of the cultivation bench 10 from the most downstream position 20d of the vertical guiding device 20 to the receiving member 402 is started in the horizontal conveyance upstream side region 40u.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 and 9, when in the bench conveyance standby state, the cultivation bench 10 at the most downstream position 20d of the vertical guiding device 20 is operated by the operation of the pull unit 22 and the transfer member 402 of the horizontal conveyance upstream region 40u. It is possible to move up. Further, the cultivation bench 10 on the receiving member 402 of the horizontal conveyance downstream side area 40 d can be moved to the most upstream position 20 u of the vertical guiding device 20 by the operation of the push unit 21. Therefore, after the transfer start signal is input to the controller 600, the mobile cultivating apparatus 1 of this embodiment immediately transfers the push of the cultivation bench 10 by the push unit 21 and the movement of the cultivation bench 10 by the pull unit 22. It can start (refer FIG. 20 (A) and (B)).

  Here, an area where the work place where work such as picking fruits and picking flowers is performed by the operator faces, for example, the horizontal conveyance upstream side area 40 u and the horizontal conveyance downstream side area 40 d of the horizontal conveyance device 40 A (see FIG. For example, suppose that it is the near side). In this case, the worker moves the cultivation plant or the like on the cultivation bench 10 being moved or completely moved from the most downstream position 20d of the vertical guiding device 20 to the receiving member 402 in the horizontal conveyance upstream side region 40u of the horizontal conveyance device 40. You can work against it. Therefore, the waiting time of the worker can be shortened (refer to “work place, lateral conveyance upstream side and downstream side” in FIG. 20A). With respect to the area facing the horizontal conveyance upstream side area 40u, it is not necessary for all the areas to be the work place, and a part of the horizontal conveyance downstream side area 40d out of the areas facing the horizontal conveyance upstream side area 40u It may be a working place. In this case, the worker can work on the cultivated plants and the like located on the side of the downstream conveyance downstream side region 40d among the cultivated plants and the like on the cultivation bench 10 moving from the vertical guiding device 20 to the lateral conveyance device 40 It is.

  In the mobile cultivation apparatus 1 of this embodiment, the ball-shaped conveyance of the plurality of cultivation benches 10 by the push unit 21 is performed at a lower speed than the conveyance of only one cultivation bench 10 by the pull unit 22. In other words, the transportation of the cultivation bench 10 by the pull unit 22 is completed earlier than the transportation of the cultivation bench 10 by the push unit 21 that has been started simultaneously. However, regarding the conveyance by the push unit 21 of the cultivation bench 10 and the conveyance by the pull unit 22, the conveyance by the pull unit 22 may be completed earlier or simultaneously.

  After activation of the push unit 21 and the pull unit 22, the slide bracket 222 (see FIG. 16) is moved to the pull completion position by the output of the pull completion sensor 705, that is, to the receiving member 402 of the cultivation bench 10 by the pull unit 22 When it is detected that the movement of the pull-up unit has been completed (step S3: Yes), the controller 600 stops the operation of the pull unit drive unit 224 (step S4).

  Thereafter, the push plate member 217 (see FIG. 15) is moved to the push completion position by the output of the push completion sensor 702, that is, the vertical conveyance of the plurality of cultivation benches 10 by the vertical guiding device 20 by the push unit 21 is completed. Is detected (step S5: Yes), the controller 600 stops the operation of the push unit electric motor 211 (step S6). With the completion of the ball-like conveyance of the plurality of cultivation benches 10 by the push unit 21, the cultivation bench 10 at the top of the cultivation bench arrangement on the vertical guiding device 20 is disposed at the most downstream position 20 d.

  The controller 600 reverses the push unit electric motor 211 and reversely operates the pull unit drive unit 224 so as to return the push plate member 217 (see FIG. 15) and the slide bracket 222 (see FIG. 16) to the standby position (step S7). ). It is for preparing for conveyance of the next cultivation bench 10 by push unit 21 and pull unit 22. Here, it is preferable that the rotational speed at the time of reverse rotation of the push unit electric motor 211 be faster than at the time of normal rotation (during cultivation bench 10 conveyance). Moreover, it is preferable that the moving speed of the slide bracket 222 by the reverse operation of the pull unit drive part 224 is quicker than the time of normal operation (during cultivation bench 10 conveyance).

  Further, as described above, since the pull unit 22 needs only a relatively small driving force, the pull unit drive unit 224 can move the slide bracket 222 at a speed faster than the moving speed of the push plate member 217 in the push unit 21. Have. That is, before the push plate member 217 of the push unit 21 reaches the standby position, the slide bracket 222 of the pull unit 22 reaches the standby position. When it is detected by the output of the pull return sensor 706 that the slide bracket 222 has moved to the standby position, that is, when the pull unit 22 has returned to the standby state (step S8: Yes), the controller 600 controls the pull unit drive unit 224. The reverse operation is stopped (step S9).

  In the pull unit 22, the swing engagement is performed while the slide bracket 222 moves to the standby position below the cultivation bench 10 at the most downstream position 20d (the position shown by the solid line in FIG. 16) by the reverse operation of the pull unit drive unit 224. The tip engaging portion 225 of the member 223 is the lateral frame member 111 on the end side (rear side) of the moving direction of the cultivation bench 10 on the transfer member 402 (see FIG. 12) and the moving direction of the cultivation bench at the most downstream position 20d. The distal end engaging portion 225 swings by sequentially contacting the lateral frame member 111 on the distal end side (front side). The vertical conveyance sensor 704 detects the swinging of the tip engaging portion 225 twice to confirm that the cultivation bench 10 is disposed on the transfer member 402 and the most downstream position 20d of the vertical guiding device 20. it can.

  Moreover, the slide bracket 222 moved to the lateral conveyance upstream side area 40u together with the cultivation bench 10 in steps S2 to S4 is located below the cultivation bench 10, which hinders the lowering of the cultivation bench 10, but the step As the slide bracket 222 is moved to the standby position in S7 to S9, the cultivation bench 10 can be lowered. The controller 600 operates the lifting device 43 to lower the transfer member 402 to the retracted position (see FIG. 13) (step S10). Thereby, as shown in FIG. 10, the bottom surface side of the horizontal frame member 111 of the cultivation bench 10 is supported by the guide wheel 48 and the drive roller 503 in the lateral conveyance upstream region 40u of the lateral conveyance device 40, and the cultivation bench 10 is As a result, the lateral conveyance is enabled. In addition, when the work place of the worker includes the area facing the lateral conveyance upstream side area 40 u, the worker can carry out the work on the cultivated plants and the like on the cultivation bench 10 which is moving downward.

  The controller 600 operates the lateral conveyance electric motor 501 of the lateral conveyance device 40 so as to convey the cultivation bench 10 from the lateral conveyance upstream region 40 u of the lateral conveyance device 40 to the lateral conveyance downstream region 40 d (step S11). At this time, the push unit electric motor 211 of the push unit 21 is continuing the reverse operation started in step S7, and the push plate member 217 has not returned to the standby position (the position shown by the solid line in FIG. 15). The unit 21 is not in the standby state (the state before transportation of the cultivation bench). When the cultivation bench 10 passes above the push unit 21, the controller 600 returns the push plate member 217 to the standby position and starts lateral transportation of the cultivation bench 10 in anticipation of the push unit 21 being in the standby state ( See FIG. 20 (A)).

  After the horizontal conveyance electric motor 501 is actuated and horizontal conveyance of the cultivation bench 10 is started, after a while (for example, after about 2 seconds), the leading end of the cultivation bench 10 in the lateral movement direction (lateral conveyance downstream side region 40d side) It enters into the horizontal conveyance downstream side area 40d. For example, when only the area facing the horizontal conveyance downstream side area 40d is the worker's work place, the worker can start work on the cultivation plants etc. placed on the moving direction front end side on the cultivation bench 10 become. In addition, when the work place of the worker includes the area facing the horizontal conveyance upstream side area 40u, the worker applies to the cultivation plants etc. placed on the cultivation bench 10 portion moving the horizontal conveyance upstream side area 40u. It is of course possible to do the work.

  When the push return sensor 703 detects that the push plate member 217 of the push unit 21 has returned to the standby position (the position indicated by the solid line in FIG. 15) after the lateral conveyance of the cultivation bench 10 is started (step S12), the controller 600 The reverse operation of the push unit electric motor 211 is stopped (step S13). The push plate member 217 is returned to the standby position before the tip in the lateral movement direction of the cultivation bench 10 reaches the push unit 21. As a result, the push unit 21 is in a standby state (the state before conveyance of the cultivation bench 10), and the cultivation bench 10 can pass through the push unit 21. Moreover, during the horizontal conveyance period of the cultivation bench 10, the passing-on member 402 is arrange | positioned in a retracted position (refer FIG. 13).

  Lateral conveyance of the cultivation bench 10 by the lateral conveyance device 40 is continued, and the leading end of the cultivation bench 10 in the lateral movement direction passes over the push unit 21 in the standby state to reach the arrangement position of the lateral conveyance completion sensor 701. When the lateral conveyance completion sensor 701 detects the arrival of the cultivation bench 10 (step S14), the controller 600 stops the operation of the lateral conveyance electric motor 501 (step S15). In addition, the controller 600 is the irrigation apparatus 31 and chemical | medical agent dispersion which are arrange | positioned in the approximate center part of horizontal conveyance apparatus 40B (refer FIG. 1) of the back side during the horizontal conveyance period of cultivation bench 10 (between step S11 to S15). It is possible to operate the apparatus 32 appropriately and to perform watering and chemical spraying on the cultivation plants on the cultivation bench 10 during lateral movement.

  When the lateral conveyance of the cultivation bench 10 to the lateral conveyance downstream side region 40d is completed, a pair of idle wheels 14 is disposed above one of the passing members 402 of the lateral conveyance downstream side region 40d, and the other passing member 402 A pair of idler wheels 15 are disposed above the upper and lower sides (see FIG. 2). The controller 600 operates the lifting device 43 to move the receiving member 402 to the raised position (step S16). In this state, the series of cultivation bench conveyance control by the controller 600 is finished, and the mobile cultivation apparatus 1 is in the bench conveyance standby state (see FIGS. 1 and 9). In addition, it is possible for a worker to work on a cultivation plant etc. on cultivation bench 10, while rising movement of cultivation bench 10. In addition, it is possible that the operator can work on the cultivated plants and the like on the cultivation bench 10 located on the passing-through member 402 positioned at the raised position in the lateral conveyance downstream side region 49d while the bench conveyance standby state It is.

  After this, the worker finishes the work in the work place in front of the horizontal conveyance downstream side area 40d of the horizontal conveyance device 40, or while the cultivation bench 10 moves on the horizontal conveyance device 40A (see FIG. 1) When the activation switch 707 is pressed after completion, the control from step S1 is repeated again.

  Also, the controller 600 automatically executes the control of steps S1 to S16 when a predetermined time measured inside or outside the controller 600 elapses instead of the input of the conveyance start signal from the activation switch 707. You may Although this predetermined time is set in consideration of the time required for the work on the cultivation bench 10, it is preferable that it can be changed. In this case, even if the worker completes the work on the cultivation bench 10 and does not press the start switch 707, the control from step S1 starts automatically, and the next cultivation bench 10 to be worked is the vertical guiding device 20. From the most downstream position 20 d, it is conveyed to the lateral conveyance downstream region 20 d via the lateral conveyance upstream region 40 u of the lateral conveyance device 40. When a failure occurs during transportation of the cultivation bench 10, the operator presses the stop switch 708, the transportation stop signal is input to the controller 600, and the transportation of the cultivation bench 10 is stopped.

  Thus, in the mobile cultivation apparatus 1 of this embodiment, since the cultivation bench 10 is stopped in the lateral conveyance downstream side region 40d of the lateral conveyance apparatus 40 in the bench conveyance standby state, immediately after the conveyance of the cultivation bench 10 starts. The cultivation bench 10 in the lateral conveyance downstream side area 40d of the lateral conveyance device 40 is conveyed to the most upstream position 20u of the longitudinal guiding device 20, and the cultivation bench 10 in the most downstream position 20d of the longitudinal guiding device 20 is lateral conveyance It is transported to the lateral transport upstream region 40 u of the device 40. More specifically, in the bench conveyance standby state, the passing member 402 is disposed at the raised position, and the cultivation bench 10 is stopped on the passing member 402 in the lateral conveyance downstream area 40d. Then, immediately after the conveyance of the cultivation bench 10 is started, the cultivation bench 10 on the receiving member 402 of the horizontal conveyance downstream side region 40d is conveyed to the most upstream position 20u of the vertical guiding device 20 and the highest position of the vertical guiding device 20 The cultivation bench 10 at the downstream position 20 d is transported onto the transfer member 402 in the lateral transport upstream region 40 u of the lateral transport device 40. As described above, the worker can start operations such as picking fruits and picking flowers while the cultivation bench 10 is moving from the vertical guiding device 20 to the lateral conveying device 40. Therefore, the mobile cultivation apparatus 1 of this embodiment can accelerate the work start time of the worker and can shorten the waiting time of the worker.

  Moreover, the mobile cultivation apparatus 1 of this embodiment moves the cultivation bench 10 in the horizontal conveyance downstream side area 40d to the vertical guiding apparatus 20, and conveys a plurality of cultivation benches in a row on the vertical guiding apparatus 20. The push unit 21 (21A, 21B) and the pair of pull units 22 (22A, 22B) for moving the cultivation bench 10 at the most downstream position 20d of the vertical guiding device 20 to the horizontal conveyance upstream region 40u of the horizontal conveyance device 40 The operation of the push unit 21 and the pull unit 22 is simultaneously performed (step S2 in FIG. 19). Thereby, in the mobile cultivation apparatus 1 of this embodiment, the cultivation bench 10 at the head of the cultivation bench arrangement on the vertical guiding apparatus 20 is disposed at the most downstream position 20 d of the vertical guiding apparatus 20 by the operation of the push unit 21, for example. The cultivation bench 10 in the vertical guiding device 20 starts moving to the lateral conveyance device 40 as compared with the reference configuration example (see FIG. 20B) in which the cultivation bench 10 is later moved to the lateral conveyance device 40 by the pull unit 22 Can be done early. In addition, the worker can start work while the cultivation bench 10 is moving from the vertical guiding device 20 to the lateral conveyance device 40. Therefore, the mobile cultivation apparatus 1 of this embodiment can accelerate the work start time of the worker and can shorten the waiting time of the worker. Moreover, since the mobile cultivation apparatus 1 of this embodiment performs the operation of the push unit 21 and the pull unit 22 simultaneously, cultivation of the lateral conveyance device 40 after the push unit 21 is activated as compared to the above reference configuration example. The time until the movement of the bench 10 is completed can be shortened, and hence the time required for the circulation of the cultivation bench 10 can be shortened.

  In the reference configuration example of FIG. 20 (B), the pull unit 22 is operated after the cultivation bench 10 is disposed at the most downstream position 20d of the vertical guiding device 20 by the operation of the push unit 21. The cultivation bench 10 is not disposed at the most downstream position 20 d of the vertical guiding device 20 when the device is in operation. That is, in the reference configuration example, in the state where the cultivation bench 10 is placed on the horizontal conveyance devices 40A and 40B, the most downstream position 20d of the vertical guiding devices 20A and 20B is an empty space without the cultivation bench 10 It is in the state.

  On the other hand, in the mobile cultivation apparatus 1 of this embodiment, the cultivation benches 10 are additionally disposed at the most downstream positions 20d of the vertical guiding devices 20A and 20B which are in the vacant state in the reference configuration example. That is, in the mobile cultivation apparatus 1 of this embodiment, the most downstream position 20d from the uppermost stream position 20u of the vertical guiding devices 20A and 20B in a state where the cultivation bench 10 is placed on the horizontal conveyance devices 40A and 40B. Cultivation benches 10 are arranged in all areas up to. Thereby, the mobile cultivation apparatus 1 of this embodiment can perform the operation of the push unit 21 and the pull unit 22 simultaneously. More specifically, the movement of one cultivation bench 10 from the lateral conveyance downstream side area 40 d of the lateral conveyance device 40 to the most upstream position 40 u of the longitudinal guidance device 20 by the operation of the push unit 21 and on the longitudinal guidance device 20 Conveying a plurality of cultivation benches 10 simultaneously and simultaneously moving one cultivation bench 10 from the most downstream position 20d of the vertical guiding device 20 to the lateral conveyance upstream region 40u of the lateral conveying device 40 by the operation of the pull unit 22 It can start. In addition, the cultivation bench 10 of the top of the cultivation bench arrangement on the longitudinal guidance device 20 is arranged at the most downstream position 20 d by the completion of the ball-like conveyance of the plurality of cultivation benches 10 on the longitudinal guidance device 20 by the push unit 21 Ru.

  Furthermore, for example, when the work place where the work to the cultivation bench 10 is performed by the worker includes the lateral conveyance upstream side area 40u of the lateral conveyance device 40, in the mobile cultivation device 1 of this embodiment, cultivation is performed on the lateral conveyance device 40. In the state where the bench 10 is placed, the cultivation bench 10 to be the next operation target is disposed at the most downstream position 20d of the vertical guiding device 20, so the reference in which the most downstream position 20d is empty. As compared with the configuration example, the distance between the cultivation bench 10 to be the next work target and the work place is short. Therefore, in the mobile cultivation apparatus 1 of this embodiment, the worker can start the work for the next cultivation bench 10 earlier as compared to the reference configuration example, and the waiting time of the worker can be shortened.

  Moreover, after moving the cultivation bench 10 in the horizontal conveyance downstream side area | region 40d to the vertical guidance apparatus 20 by the action | operation of the push unit 21, the moving cultivation apparatus 1 of this embodiment is a state before the cultivation bench conveyance of the push unit 21. During the operation of returning to the step S2, the lateral conveyance of the cultivation bench 10 by the lateral conveyance device 40 is started (step S11 in FIG. 19). Therefore, compared with the reference configuration example in which the lateral conveyance by the lateral conveyance device 40 is started after the push unit 21 returns to the state before the cultivation bench conveyance, the mobile cultivation device 1 of this embodiment performs the lateral conveyance of the cultivation bench 10 You can accelerate the start time. That is, the mobile cultivation apparatus 1 of this embodiment can shorten the time from the cultivation bench 10 being disposed in the lateral conveyance upstream side area 40 u of the lateral conveyance apparatus 40 to reaching the lateral conveyance downstream side area 40 d, and hence cultivation The time required to circulate the bench 10 can be reduced.

  Moreover, the mobile culture apparatus 1 of this embodiment arrange | positions the culture bench 10 in the horizontal conveyance upstream side area | region 40 u of the horizontal conveyance apparatus 40 by advancing the horizontal conveyance start time of the cultivation bench 10 compared with the said reference structural example. It is possible to shorten the time from when the sheet is laterally conveyed to start entering the lateral conveyance downstream area 40d. For example, in the case where the work place of the worker is only the area facing the horizontal conveyance downstream side area 40d of the horizontal conveyance device 40, the worker has entered the cultivation bench 10 which has entered the horizontal conveyance downstream side area 40d from the horizontal conveyance upstream side area 40u. Work can be started on the above-mentioned cultivated plants etc. Therefore, the mobile cultivation apparatus 1 of this embodiment can advance the start time of the workable period of the worker by advancing the horizontal transfer start time of the cultivation bench 10, and can shorten the waiting time of the worker.

  As described above, the mobile culture apparatus 1 of this embodiment can shorten the waiting time of the worker, so the operator can start the operation start time for the cultivated plants on the cultivation bench 10 earlier, and hence the operation end time, and further Can shorten the transfer waiting time of the cultivation bench 10. That is, the mobile cultivation apparatus 1 of this embodiment can shorten the worker's waiting time, thereby shortening the worker's total working time including the waiting time, in other words, the worker's working time and restraint time.

  Next, a modification of the mobile cultivation device 1 and another example of cultivation bench transport control will be described with reference to FIG. 1, FIG. 18, and FIG. 21 to FIG. FIG. 23 shows an example of a time chart at the time of harvesting work, (C) shows a time chart of a modification, and (B) shows a time chart of a reference configuration example. In FIG. 23, the time chart of (B) is the same as that of FIG. 20 (B). In the description of this modification, for convenience, the same reference numerals as in the above embodiment will be used for the reference numerals indicating the respective devices and members. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 21, the mobile cultivation apparatus 1 of this embodiment sets a state in which the cultivation bench 10 is stopped in the lateral conveyance downstream side region 40 d of the lateral conveyance device 40 as a bench conveyance standby state. Here, the relay member 402 is located at the lowered position (see FIGS. 2 and 13). In addition, the cultivation bench 10 is disposed at the most downstream position 20 d of the vertical guiding device 20.

  As shown in FIG. 22, when the start switch 707 is pressed by the operator while the mobile cultivation apparatus 1 is in the bench transfer standby state, a transfer start signal of the start switch 707 is input to the controller 600 (step S1). The controller 600 operates the lifting device 43 to move the receiving member 402 to the raised position (step S1-1). Thereby, the mobile cultivation apparatus 1 will be in the same state as the bench conveyance standby state of the said embodiment. As in the above embodiment, instead of the input of the conveyance start signal from the start switch 707, step S1 may be automatically executed if a predetermined time measured inside or outside the controller 600 has elapsed. Good.

  Subsequently, the controller 600 performs the same control as steps S2 to S10 of the cultivation bench transport control described above with reference to FIG. Referring also to FIG. 23C, the push unit 21 and the pull unit 22 are simultaneously operated, and the cultivation bench 10 on the receiving member 402 in the horizontal conveyance downstream side region 40d is the most upstream position 20u of the vertical guiding device 20. Then, the cultivation bench at the most downstream position 20d is moved onto the transfer member 402 of the lateral conveyance upstream side area 40u (steps S2 to S6). The pull unit drive unit 224 is reversely operated simultaneously with the reverse rotation of the push unit electric motor 211 (step S7), and after the pull unit 22 returns to the standby state (steps S8 and S9), the lifting device 43 is operated. The transfer member 402 is lowered to the retracted position (see FIG. 13) (step S10).

  Thereafter, when the push return sensor 703 detects that the push plate member 217 of the push unit 21 returns to the standby position (step S10-1), the controller 600 stops the reverse operation of the push unit electric motor 211 (step S10- 2). Subsequently, the controller 600 starts the lateral conveyance of the cultivation bench 10 by the lateral conveyance device 40 (step S11), and thereafter, when the lateral conveyance completion sensor 701 detects the arrival of the cultivation bench 10 (step S14), the lateral conveyance electric motor The operation of 501 is stopped (step S15). In this state, a series of cultivation bench conveyance control by the controller 600 in this embodiment is finished, and the mobile cultivation apparatus 1 is in the bench conveyance standby state (see FIGS. 1 and 21).

  Since this embodiment simultaneously executes the operation of the push unit 21 and the pull unit 22 (see FIG. 23C), the operation of the push unit 21 is the same as the embodiment described with reference to FIGS. After the cultivation bench 10 located at the top of the cultivation bench arrangement on the vertical guiding device 20 is disposed at the most downstream position 20 d by operation, the cultivation bench 10 at the most downstream position 20 d is operated to the horizontal transport device 40 by the operation of the pull unit 22 As compared with the reference configuration example to be moved (refer to FIG. 20 (B)), the transfer start timing of the cultivation bench 10 from the most downstream position 20d of the vertical guiding device 20 to the horizontal transfer device 40 is advanced to start the worker's work The time can be made earlier, which in turn can reduce the waiting time of the worker.

  In this embodiment, similarly to the above-described embodiment described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 20, after the receiving member 402 is lowered to the retracted position by the lowering operation of the lifting and lowering device 43 (step S10) Before the unit 21 returns to the state before the cultivation bench 10 conveyance, the lateral conveyance of the cultivation bench 10 by the lateral conveyance device 40 may be started (see steps S11 to S13 in FIG. 19). Thereby, as in the above-described embodiment described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 19, after the push unit 21 returns to the state before the cultivation bench 10 is transported, compared to the configuration in which the lateral transportation by the lateral transportation device 40 is started It is possible to shorten the time from the cultivation bench 10 being arranged in the lateral conveyance upstream side area 40u of the lateral conveyance device 40 to reaching the lateral conveyance downstream side area 40d by advancing the lateral conveyance start time of the cultivation bench 10, As a result, the time required for circulation of the cultivation bench 10 can be shortened.

  Further, in this embodiment, if the work place is, for example, an area (for example, the near side) facing the lateral conveyance upstream region 40u and the lateral conveyance downstream region 40d of the lateral conveyance device 40A (see FIG. 1), Similar to the above-described embodiment described with reference to FIG. 20, the waiting time of the worker can be shortened (see “Working place, lateral conveyance upstream side and downstream side” in FIG. 23C).

  The embodiment of the present invention described above is merely an example, and the configuration of each part is not limited to the embodiment described with reference to the drawings, and various modifications may be made without departing from the scope of the present invention. It is possible. For example, although the plurality of cultivation benches 10 are configured to circulate counterclockwise in plan view as shown in FIG. 1 in the above embodiment, the direction of lateral conveyance by the lateral conveyance devices 40A and 40B is reversed. If the arrangement of the push units 21A and 21B and the pull units 22A and 22B is reversed, the circulation direction of the plurality of cultivation benches 10 can be changed clockwise.

  Further, in the above-described embodiment, the lateral conveyance device 40 has a passing member 402 connected to the vertical guiding device 20, an elevated position at which the passing member 402 is connected to the vertical guiding device 20, and a retracted position retracted downward. The lifting and lowering device 43 for lifting and lowering the transfer member 402 is provided between them, but the configuration of the mobile cultivation device of the present invention is not limited to this. For example, as disclosed in Patent Document 1, the mobile cultivation apparatus of the present invention may be configured not to raise and lower the cultivation bench regarding the movement of the cultivation bench between the lateral conveyance apparatus and the vertical guiding apparatus.

  Moreover, although the mobile cultivation apparatus 1 is equipped with the pull unit 22 in the said embodiment, the mobile cultivation apparatus of this invention does not need to be equipped with the said pull unit. In this case, the movement of the cultivation bench 10 from the most downstream position 20 d of the longitudinal guiding device 20 to the lateral conveyance upstream region 40 u of the lateral conveying device 40 is, for example, a plurality of cultivation benches 10 on the longitudinal guiding device 20 by the push unit 21. It may be made to be carried out by the ball-like transfer.

  Further, in the description of the above embodiment, the work place where work such as picking fruits and picking flowers is performed by the worker is the area facing the horizontal conveyance device 40A (see FIG. 1), but the work place is It may be a region facing the lateral conveyance device 40B. Further, the work place may be both the area facing the lateral conveyance device 40A and the area facing the lateral conveyance device 40B. In this case, it is preferable that cultivated plants and the like on the cultivation bench 10 be arranged and grown so that work can be performed from both sides of the longitudinal side of the cultivation bench 10. For example, when the cultivation plant on cultivation bench 10 is a strawberry, the direction in which the flower buds are extended is adjusted for each strain, and a strain for attaching a fruit to one long side of cultivation bench 10 and a fruit on the other long side Cultivate the stock with In this way, the strain to be worked on the side of the lateral transfer device 40A and the strain to be worked on the side of the lateral transfer device 40B can be separately arranged and grown on the same cultivation bench 10, and the lateral transfer device to the same strain It is possible to prevent a decrease in work efficiency caused by working on both the 40A side and the lateral conveyance device 40B side.

  Moreover, in the said embodiment, although the some cultivation bench 10 is conveyed on the vertical guiding apparatus 20 by the action | operation of the push unit 21 in the shape of a hammer, the structure of the mobile cultivation apparatus of this invention is not limited to this. For example, as disclosed in Patent Document 2, the mobile culture apparatus of the present invention may be configured to apply force to each of the plurality of culture benches arranged on the vertical guide apparatus to move.

  Moreover, in the mobile cultivation apparatus of this invention, a push unit is not limited to the structure which conveys a cultivation bench in the shape of a hammer. For example, a vertical transport mechanism is separately provided to move a plurality of cultivation benches on the vertical guiding device toward the lateral transport upstream region of the lateral transport device, and the push unit is a cultivation bench in the lateral transport downstream region of the lateral transport device May be moved to the most upstream position of the cultivation bench arrangement in the longitudinal guiding device. In this case, the vertical transfer mechanism may be configured to transfer the cultivation bench from the most upstream position to the most downstream position, and further, the horizontal transfer upstream of the lateral transfer mechanism of the cultivation bench at the most downstream position of the cultivation bench arrangement. It may be configured to move to the side. In the former case, the movement of the cultivation bench from the most downstream position to the lateral conveyance upstream region is realized by, for example, the pull unit described in the above embodiment. The configuration of the drive mechanism of the vertical transfer mechanism is not particularly limited, and may be realized by the same configuration as the vertical transfer mechanism disclosed in Patent Document 2, for example, or realized by a transport device such as a conveyor. It may be done.

  Moreover, the structure of the cultivation bench in the mobile cultivation apparatus of this invention is not limited to the structure of the cultivation bench 10 of the said embodiment. For example, the cultivation bench may have a horizontally long rectangular metal plate which occupies approximately the entire area of the bench in a plan view, and a cultivated plant or the like may be arranged on the metal plate. Such a metal plate is formed, for example, by sheet metal processing.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 mobile cultivation apparatus 10 cultivation bench 20, 20A, 20B vertical guidance apparatus 20d most downstream position 21, 21A, 21B push unit 22, 22A, 22B pull unit 40, 40A, 40B horizontal conveyance apparatus 40d horizontal conveyance downstream side area 40u horizontal conveyance Upstream region

Claims (2)

A plurality of culture benches are directed from the lateral conveyance downstream side area of one lateral conveyance apparatus to the lateral conveyance upstream area of the other lateral conveyance apparatus with a pair of lateral conveyance apparatuses arranged in parallel with the conveyance direction opposite to each other. A pair of vertical guiding devices for guiding are arranged in a closed loop, and a single cultivation bench is horizontally transported on the horizontal transportation device, and a plurality of cultivation benches are transported on the vertical guiding device, and a plurality of cultivation benches along the closed loop. Mobile cultivation equipment that circulates
In a series of bench conveying standby state cultivation bench conveying operation is in the stopped state, the in transverse transport device on a configuration in which cultivation bench Ru is stopped in said transverse conveyor downstream region,
A pair of push units for moving the cultivation benches in the horizontal conveyance downstream side area to the longitudinal guiding device and conveying the plurality of cultivation benches in a hammering manner on the longitudinal guiding device;
A pair of pull units for moving the cultivation bench at the most downstream position of the vertical guiding device to the lateral conveyance upstream area;
Mobile cultivation apparatus which performs operation of said push unit and said pull unit simultaneously . It has a pair of push units for moving a cultivation bench in the lateral conveyance downstream side area to the longitudinal guiding device,
After moving the cultivation bench in the lateral conveyance downstream side area by the operation of the push unit, the lateral conveyance of the cultivation bench by the lateral conveyance device is started while the push unit returns to the state before the cultivation bench conveyance. The mobile cultivation apparatus according to claim 1 .

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